The Guides’ Beta: North Ridge, Table Rock (Linville Gorge)
The North Ridge, Table Rock, 5.5, Grade I Introduction: With arguably the best views of any Table Rock climb, the North Ridge is a beginner route, yet engaging for 5.5. While not the longest climb on Table Rock at just under 300’, this route is aesthetic, clean, and incorporates a variety of climbing styles that have made this climb one that I always love to return to. I
The Guides’ Beta: Rattlesnake Crack – An Obscure Classic
Rattlesnake Crack AKA Judicial Review, at John Rock, 5.9 Grade II 320’ Introduction: John Rock… an area that sits in the shadows of Looking Glass and Cedar Rock. Though John Rock often gets overlooked, it's home to awesome routes that can feel quite adventurous. Tucked into the far side of John Rock is Rattlesnake Crack, one of the best moderate cracks in all of Pisgah. Cracks as
The Guides’ Beta: The Nose of Looking Glass Rock
The Nose, Looking Glass Rock, 5.8 Grade II, 400' Introduction: Since 1966 The Nose of Looking Glass Rock has been climbed by thousands of climbers. Both newer climbers and experienced climbers have found themselves on mini epics of The Nose. While the route is mostly straight forward, there are some nuanced approaches to how it is climbed and descended. The rich history combined with the unique climbing
The Guides’ Beta: North Carolina’s Best Trad Adventures
Part of our mission at Fox Mountain Guides is to educate climbers of all skill levels. We do that in our day to day guiding, courses, and cover special topics in our blog posts. You've seen gear reviews and tech tips, but it can be hard to find good route beta. In this new blog series, our goal is to provide key beta for North
A Professional Guide’s Review: The Edelrid Giga Jul
“Have you felt the power?”“What?” “The power of the Giga Jul?” my instructor said with a grin as we traded devices. I was on my American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) alpine guide course, and we’d just had a significant rockfall event happen. We were evacuating everyone off of the buttress, and it was my turn to rappel down towards safety. As I descended, my curiosity piqued
How to Dress for Mountaineering & Ice Climbing
It’s nearly winter, and I have started to gather my equipment together for my annual migration to New England for ice climbing and mountaineering. It’s second nature now, but packing for a mountaineering objective was overwhelming when I was first starting out. I’m gonna share my systems with you all- I hope to clarify and simplify all the stuff that’s needed to be comfortable in
